Germany’s billionaires are 75% inherited. Russia and China’s are 97% self-made. The US sits at 73% self-made.

Now look at where the startup ecosystems are thriving and where they’re calcifying.

Countries with high inherited wealth concentrations tend to have old money sitting in real estate, industrial conglomerates and family offices that write checks to their kids’ friends. Countries where billionaires built it themselves tend to have ecosystems that actually reward risk.

The uncomfortable bit for founders: the countries where angels are most likely to understand your journey are also the ones where competition for capital is fiercest. The countries where capital is easiest to access are often the ones where the people writing cheques have never built anything.

Choose your investors accordingly.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​